Ferrari’s latest GT3 weapon, the Ferrari 488 GT3, will be given its British GT Championship debut by FF Corse at the Silverstone 500.
Driven by Marco Attard, the 2014 British GT champion, and Adam Carroll, who has driven the Barwell Motorsport Lamborghini at Rockingham and Oulton Park, the Italian stallion will take to Silverstone for a one-off at the moment but there is possibility for more rounds.
Entered by expert Ferrari squad FF Corse, but owned by Fox Motorsport, there was talk that Jamie Stanley and Paul McNeilly would race the car – being Fox Motorsport drivers for a number of years – but they will instead campaign their trusty Ginetta G55 in the GT4 class.
Attard said: “I made the decision to step aside for Phil Keen in Barwell’s Blancpain line-up but was eager to carry on racing before the 24 Hours of Spa. Naturally my first port of call was Barwell, but as all three of their Lamborghinis were already taken for British GT’s Silverstone round I had to look further afield. I felt like it had to be with a special car, and the 488 GT3 certainly ticks that box!
“Obviously Adam’s previous experience with FF Corse is a big bonus. He came highly recommended by Barwell and he’s also someone I consider to be in Alexander’s [Sims] league. That’s really important for me because if I was going to do this, even as a one-off, it needed to be with a very capable car, team and co-driver. I’m under no illusions because from what I’ve seen British GT has been incredibly competitive so far this year, but we’ve given ourselves a decent chance of running near the front.”
Indeed, Stanley is hoping that the pairing of a former British GT champion and a rapid pro will showcase the performance of the car in order to lease the machine, and FF Corse’s vast experience, to customers for the remainder of this season and into 2017.
The decision not to put themselves in the car is based on Stanley’s and McNeilly’s – the Fox Motorsport team owner – desire to create a route for drivers to move up the ladder from karting all the way into GT racing. The future of that program will be on display come the end of the British GT season at Donington Park where Fox junior Sam Webster will team up with Stanley in the GT4 Ginetta.
Stanley said: “Silverstone will definitely be a showcase of what the Ferrari’s capable of and with one eye on the future. Paul’s business commitments mean he doesn’t have time to race full-time, so the 488 falls into a wider strategy that we’re putting together with Fox Motorsport, FF Corse and hopefully other clients.
“There aren’t many 488s or teams with the expertise to run them readily available, and none in Britain as far as I know, so this is a great opportunity for someone who wants to dip their toe in the water without committing to buying one.”
